Sheet cutter for packaging machines



Oct. 29, 1940. R. N. D0BLE SHEET CUTTER FOR PACKAGING MACHINES- 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Nov. e, 193'! lnve n+or' Rcflph N. Doble Oct. 29, 1940. R. N. DOBLE 7 I I SHEET CUTTER FOR PACKAGING MACHINES Filed Nov. 6 1931 v Sheets- Sheet 2 meme e 29,1940 h 2,219,682

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

2,219,682 SHEET CUTTER FOR PACKAGING MACHINES Ralph N. Dobie, Hingham, Mass. Application November 6, 1937, Serial No. 173,200 Claims. (01. 164-49) This invention relates to packaging machines into the correct position over the supporting plate of the type adapted to make and fill a tea bag, by means of a current of air. In this way the cofiee bag or the like and especially to a packagbag material is held out of contact with the suping machine of the general type illustrated in porting plate as it is advanced thereover and 5-my Patent No. 1,700,672, January 29, 1929 and will be held in a smooth unwrinkled condition 5 Patents No. 1,857,662, May 10, 1932, and No. by the air current.

1,911,805, May 30, 1933. Another feature of my invention relates to The devices illustrated in said patents are means for terminating the action of the current d i n d t p du b ss. f e ss r h of air on the length of bag material after it ike O t Pelleh p and t y comprise a has been properly positioned over the supporting pp n Plate h ving a bag-formin Opening plate and as soon as such length is severed from therein together with means for feeding a piece t strip As soon as tm occurs t severed of bag material Onto th Plate O the Opening, length of bag material will gravitate onto the and a o n d fil ing and bag-for tube plate in the correct position for the formation structed to be forced through the opening with of t bag 15 the result that the bag material is forced through 4 Another feature of t present invention e p n and folded p around the tube by lates to improved means for feeding the bag mathe edges of th p While the eomhined terial from the supply roll or rolls to the feed filling and bag-forming tube is still within the ro11s v H 0 Pehihg predetermined amount the In order to give an understanding of the inwhee other material wlth which the bag is to vention I have illustrated in the drawings some he hhed is deposited mm the W and thus into selected embodiments thereof which will now be the and the F is wlthdmwhhhd the described after which the novel features will be neck of the bag is closed together and tied by a pointed out in the appended claimt suitable fastening device, a In the drawings:

In the ophra'hoh of these machmes the bag Fig. 1 is a side view of a portion of a packaging material, which is drawn from a supply roll, is machine embodying my invention; usually form of a strip h this strip of Fig. 2 is a fragmentary sectionalview through hag mammal 15 fed forward to h a length at the feed rolls and the supporting plate showing the end thereof over the supporting plate, and the manner in which the bag material is 30 then said length is severed from the strip justinto position above the plate; before the bag is formed and fined- Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2 but showing In order that the bag may he pmhefly e a length of bag material cut from the strip andit is impmant that at each bag'formmg the operation of forming the bag therefrom;

tion the length of the bag material from which Fig 4 is a section on the line Fig. 2; 35 the bag is to made should be placed squarely Fig 5 is a fragmentary and somewhat on the supporting plate in a smooth unwrmkled grammatic View illustrating a slightly different cohdmohh the ohera'hon of packagmg feed device for feeding the bag material to the chines of this type it sometimes happens that bag formmg instrumentalities; I I

40 the free end of the strip of bag material which Since my present invention r 81 ate to the I 40 is being qenveredfimm the feed Ions Wm gfi feeding of the bag material to the bag-forming up or wpnkle as It colftacts h or is 1 e instrumentalities, I have not thought it necessuppofl'mg plate crumplmgtfr 23 i sary to illustrate a a complete machine herein may be due to vanous causes as c 0 but have shown only such portions of the pack-' t l and the late or the p between bag ma aging machine as are necessary to illustrate my 5 presence of static electricity which has been de- I veloped in the bag material which causes to present invention. The bag material I may be beattract'edto the plate and to cling somewhat Single-Ply a e i -P y e i and may thereto as it is fed forward. be in the form of a strip of fabric or paper or a One purpose of my present invention is to procombination of the, two. The bag material is vide novel means for insuring that the bag madelivered from the supply roll or rolls '2, a single terial will be fed properly from the feed rolls to supply roll being employed if the strip isa singlethe supporting plate, and Ipropose to accomplish ply strip and two supply rolls 2, as shown in Fig. this ob ect by p ov di ns f fl t g the 1, being employed if the strip is atwo-ply strip,

65 bag material as it is delivered from the feed rolls one ply being taken from each of the supply rolls.

2 These supply rolls are suitably supported on the frame 8 of the machine.

The strip of bag material, whether a singleply strip or a plural-ply strip, passes between feed rolls 4 and 8, one or both of which are positively driven, and is then fed to the usual supporting plate 8 which has the bag-forming opening 1 therein. When a material has been fed into position over the supporting plate 8, then such length is cut oil. from the strip I by means of shear devices 8 as described in said above mentioned patents. The

combined filling and bag-forming tube is shown at I0, and after the length 8 of bag material has been cut from the strip I said tube is depressed downwardly into and through the bag-forming opening I, thereby causing the edges of the length 8 of bag material to be folded up around the tube as shown in Fig. 3. The required charge of tea, coffee or other ingredient is then deposited into the tube from a suitable measuring or weighing device 80, after which the tube is withdrawn and the edges of the bag are closed together by means of gripping jaws I I carried by the rotatable turret I2. As the turret rotates the filled bag is carried by the closed gripping jaws II out from under the plate 8, and during this rotation the neck of the bag is tied tightly by means of a suitable fastening device in the manner described 0 in the above mentioned patents.

In order that each bag may be properly formed it is necessary that the length 8 of bag material should be delivered to the supporting plate 8 in a flat unwrinkled condition and in a position in which it is properly aligned with the bagforming opening 1. Although the feed rolls 4 and 5 serve to deliver at each bag-forming opera: tion the requisite length 8 of bag material to form a bag, yet unless the free end of this length 8 is properly controlled there is a possibility that said length may crumple up more or less as it is delivered from the feed rolls to the supporting plate 8, in which casesaid length of bag material will not be delivered onto the supporting plate 8 in the necessaryfiat condition nor in the proper position relative to the bag-forming opening I to have the bag formed correctly. The crumpling up or buckling of the bag material may be occasioned by the presence of static electricity in said material which causes it to be attracted to and to adhere to the plate 8, or it may be due to roughness or foreign matter on the plate which produces suflicient friction between the bagmaterial and the plate to prevent said material from being fed into the proper position, or it may be caused from other causes:

To provide for the proper delivery of the free end of the bag material to the plate 8 I propose to employ means for floating the free end of the bag material into place over the plate 8 on a current of air, said air current being so directed against the under side of the portion 8 of the bag material as to keep it fiat and smooth and to feed it forward as it is delivered from the feed rolls 4, 5 so that the bag-forming length 8 will be brought over the plate condition.

As shown in the drawings there is provided a delivery apron I3 on the delivery side of the feed rolls 4, 5, over which apron the bag material is fed, and situated directly beneath the delivery end of this apron is an air delivery nozzle I4 through which a sheet-like jet of air is delivered that flows along over the plate 8 and underneath the portion 8 of bag material. The velocity 8 in a fiat, unwrinkled suitable length 80! the bagand pressure of the air thus delivered through the dicated by the arrows II in Fig. 2, which is sumcient to support the length 8 of-bag material and float it along over the plate 8. Various ways of providing the nozzle may be employed. I have herein shown an air chamber I8 situated directly beneath the apron l8 and having in one side a slot which forms the nozzle I 4. The chamber is provided with an inlet I 'I through which air under the required pressure and in the required volume may be delivered to the chamber and thus "to and through the nozzle I4.

The presence of this air current I8 flowing over the plate 8 in the direction of feed serves to support the free end 8 of the bag material as it is delivered from the feed rolls and hold it out of contact with the plate 8 as shown in Fig. 2 and to carry it in a flat, unwrinkled condition into the correct position over the plate 8. When the required length of bag material has been fed over the plate 8 the feed rollers stop, as usual in devices of this type, and the shear blades 8 close together to sever the length 8 from the strip I. The closing together of the shear blades 8 as shown in Fig. 3, forms a dam or barrier for the air current delivered from the nozzle I4 and deflects this air current either up or down so that as soon as the blades'are closed the severed length 8 of bag material is freed from the action of the current I8 and said bag material then settles down onto the plate 8 in a fiat, unwrinkled condition, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 3. The bag material is thus delivered to the plate 8 in a free, unwrinkled condition and in a correct position to be acted on by the combined filling and bag-forming tube I8.

After the bag has been formed and filled as above described the shear blades are separated from each other and the feed rolls 4 and 8 then operate to feed another length of bag material over the apron I8 and to the plate 8, and as soon as the shear blades are separated, as shown in Fig. 4, the air current delivered from the nozzle I4 serves to support the free end of bag material as it passes ofl from the apron I3 and to float said bag material over and across the plate 8 as shown in Fig. 2.

There is thus provided operative when the feed the free end of the bag means which become rolls are rotating to float material into place over the plate 8, and which become inoperative when the feeding movement stops and the shears are operated to cut the length 8 from the strip of bag material. The presence of the air current above described holds the bag material separated from the plate 8 so that the feed of the bag material into position above the plate is not interfered with by any frictional contact between the bag material and the plate or by the presence of static electricity in the bag material.

I have also provided herein means for feeding the bag material from the supply roll 2 to the feed rolls 4, 5 under a controlled tension. The supply roll 2 rests on and is supported by one or more supporting rolls, two rolls 30 and 3| being herein shown. These rolls are suitably journalled in a portion 28 of the frame and are positively driven in the same direction as and in timed relation with the feed rolls. Since the supply roll rests on the supporting rolls 38 and 3 the rotative movement of the supporting rolls will give rotation to the supply roll in a direction to deliver the bag material therefrom. If the bag material is of fabric and it is desired to subject the portion of the bag material between the supply roll and the feed roll to a very slight tension suflicient to keep it nection between the feed rolls and the supporting .fast on a suitable shaft rolls will be such that while the supporting rolls and the feed rolls may have approximately the same surface speed, yet the surface speed of the supporting rolls will be slightly less than that of the feed rolls. On the other hand if it is desired to have the length of bag material between the supply roll and the feed rolls under a controlled tension which is practically zero, then the supporting rolls will be driven at the same surface speed as the feed rolls. In the construction shown in Fig. 1 the driven feed roll 4 has a sprocket 34 rigid therewith which is connected by a sprocket chain 33 with a sprocket wheel 35 29, and this shaft 29 is connected to the supporting rolls 30 and 3| through the medium of two sprocket chains .21, 28 which pass around sprocket wheels 25 and 26 fast with the shaft 29 and the supporting rolls 30, 3| respectively.

In place of the sprocket chains and sprocket wheels 25, 26, 21 I may employ a geared connection between the shaft 29 and the two supply rolls 30 and 3| as shown in Fig. 5. In this embodiment the shaft 29 has a gear 32 which is connected to a gear 36 rigid with the supporting roll 30 through the medium of an intermediate gear 31 and which is also connected to a gear 38 that is rigid with the supporting roll 3| through the medium of another intermediate gear 39. This construction provides means for positively rotating the supporting rolls 30, 3| in timed relation with the feed rolls so that the bag material I will be delivered from the supply roll to the feed rolls under a controlled tension which may range from zero to any desired amount.

While I have illustrated herein two supporting rolls on which the supply roll rests, yet the invention would not be departed from if a single supporting roll only were used.

I claim:

1. Feeding mechanism for feeding web material to a supporting plate comprising intermittently operating feed rolls acting on a strip of web material and during each operation feeding a length thereof to said plate, means to deliver a current of air against the under side of said web material as it is delivered from the feed rolls whereby said length of web material will be floated into position over the plate, and a pair of shears to out said length of web material from the strip, said shears being positioned so that when closed they interrupt the flow of air over said plate.

2. A feeding mechanism for feeding web material to a supporting plate, said feeding mechanism comprising intermittently operating feed rolls acting on a strip of web material and during taut, then the driving coneach operation feeding a length thereof to said plate, means to deliver a current of air against the underside of said web material as it is delivered from the feed rolls, said current of air flowing over said plate, whereby said length of web material will be floated into position over the plate, and means to sever the length of web material from the strip and simultaneously interpose a barrier to the flow of air over said plate, thus allowing said severed length to settle onto the plate.

3. A feeding mechanism for feeding lengths of I web material to a supporting plate, said feeding mechanism comprising intermittently operating feeding rolls acting on a strip of web material and during each operation feeding a length thereof to said plate, an air delivery nozzle situated to direct a current of air against the underside of the web material and over said plate as the web material is delivered from the feed rolls and means to sever said length of web material from the strip and simultaneously interpose a barrier between the nozzle and the plate which cuts off the flow of air over said plate, whereby the severed length will settle into position on the plate.

4. A feeding mechanism for feeding web material to a supporting plate, said feeding mechanism comprising intermittently operating feed rolls acting on a strip of web material and during each operation feeding a length thereof to said plate, a delivery apron over which the web material passes in its travel from the feed rolls to the plate, a nozzle beneath the delivery apron arranged to deliver a sheet-like current of air against the web material and over the plate, thereby floating the web material into position above the plate, and means to sever said length of web material from the strip and simultaneously interpose a barrier between the nozzle and the plate which cuts off the flow over said plate, whereby the severed length will settle into position on the plate.

'5. In a packaging machine, the combination with a feed roll for feeding bag material in strip form to a bag-forming mechanism, a supporting roll on which rests a supply roll of bag material, said supply roll being rotated by the supporting roll, a second supply roll resting on the flrstnamed supply roll, the strip of bag material from the second supply roll passing part way around the first-named supply roll and the strips from both supply rolls being delivered from the firstnamed supply roll at the same point, and means for rotating the feed roll and the supporting roll at substantially the same surface speed whereby the bag material will be delivered from both supply rolls to the feed rolls under a controlled ten- 

